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Sunday, June 19, 2016

Israel's Emerging Mideast Foreign Policy - C. Hart

by C. Hart

"We
need to have a new strategy for the future. Despite the chaos, Israel
is very much aware, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is very much
aware, that new elements of order are emerging.”

The
16th annual Herzliya Conference a prestigious gathering that attracts
senior Israeli and international leaders in government, economics, and
academia, has just wrapped up in Israel.
Strategic assessments are given by politicians, diplomats, business and
military leaders who analyze Israel’s national, regional, and global
concerns.

On
June 15, 2016, the second day of the Tel Aviv gathering, Israeli
ambassador Dr. Dore Gold, who serves as the Director General of Israel’s
Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA), gave a speech on Israel’s foreign
policy objectives.

Claiming
that rumors are unfounded about Israel having no foreign policy and
being isolated among the nations, Gold stated that the real issue is the
political crossroads both Israel and Middle East countries are forced
to face in an unstable region.

"We
need to have a new strategy for the future. Despite the chaos, Israel
is very much aware, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is very much
aware, that new elements of order are emerging.”

According
to Gold, one of Israel’s key interests is retaining and building its
relationship with the U.S., a strategic ally of the Jewish State.

The
disagreement over the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) with
Iran, which Israel fought against in the U.S. Congress, was a low point
in American-Israel relations. Finalized in July 2015 by the P5+1 nations
(China, France, Russia, the UK, U.S., and Germany), the Iran deal
became a sticking point between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu and U.S. President Barack Obama.

At
the Herzliya Conference, Gold wanted to move on from the Iran Nuclear
Deal. “Beyond that, Israel is moving in several areas that are important
and worth mentioning for those who are still uncertain whether we have a
foreign policy.”

Acknowledging
that Netanyahu holds both the office of prime minister and foreign
minister in this current Israeli government coalition, Gold wanted to
make sure that the international community understood Israel is
fulfilling its responsibilities in the diplomatic world

"We are trying and we are effectively building a new policy towards the global community,” Gold declared.

The
most significant part of Israel’s current foreign policy framework has
been the public acknowledgement of behind-the-scenes negotiations with
the Arab world.

While at
one time, negotiations with Arab states were secret, Gold professes
that now it is different. “It is no secret that there is a strategic
convergence between Israel and many of the Sunni Arab countries”

On
his foreign policy trips abroad, Gold sits in negotiations with other
director generals of foreign ministries. On one occasion, he brought up
13 talking points that his staff at the MFA prepared for him on paper.
In the middle of explaining these points, one leader shared that those
talking points were the same ones he had received from his staff. Gold
sees this as part of Israel’s new ties with Arab states.

For
those who have pressed Israel to consider solving the
Israeli-Palestinian issue first, before reaching out to the Arab world,
Gold had this to say: "In fact, on both papers, the Palestinian issue
was not the number one issue. It was pretty close to the bottom. But, we
have to realize that isn't, any more, the currency in which you build
ties in much of the Arab World, the Sunni World."

Gold
did admit that the Palestinian issue is important to public opinion and
would continue to be one that Israel looks to solve. But, the focus for
Israel now is warming ties with moderate Arab leaders. Many of the
countries to the east in this region have fears about the rise in
Iranian power. The JCPOA was supposed to lead to a change in Iranian
behavior, but so far, Iran has been more belligerent towards the Jewish
State.

Moreover,
Iran is gaining ground in Sunni countries, often trying to manipulate
and take advantage of Shia forces in those nations. But, in the case of
the Yemen war, a number of countries, including Egypt, showed an
interest in strengthening ties with Saudi Arabia. This resulted in a
deal between Egypt and Saudi Arabia in the Red Sea area.

While
Gold would not give any details, reports indicate that Israel secretly
met with Saudi Arabia for six years in backchannel negotiations that
required a changing of Israel’s peace treaty with Egypt. Two small
islands that were in the hands of Egypt but apparently were originally
part of Saudi sovereignty, were transferred to Saudi Arabia this year.
The fact that the Saudis accepted the international treaty between
Israel and Egypt, and, that the Saudis became an integral part of that
treaty because they acquired the islands was a positive, unexpected
outcome for Israel.

Upon
Israel’s insistence, these islands will remain demilitarized, which the
Saudi’s agreed to in the deal. This advancement in relations between
Israel and Saudi Arabia has coincided with Israel establishing deeper
relations with Gulf nations. Trust is building. It is another sign of a
convergence between Israel and its Arab neighbors.

For
years, Netanyahu hinted about this discreet diplomacy. While the Obama
administration has taken a lesser leadership role in the Middle East and
moving towards a nuclear accommodation with Shiite Iran, Saudi Arabia
and the Arab Gulf states have formed Sunni alliances with Jordan and
Egypt. Israel has come into that orbit because it can provide a military
umbrella against Iranian aggression.

Meanwhile,
despite the fact that some people think international ties are frozen
for the Israeli government, Gold offers deeper revelation: “Well, under
the ice, there is a lot of hot water moving! And, we hope that we will
be able to use the new relations in the Arab world, combined with many
of our new relations in Asia and Africa, to build better relations in
the situation for us and even our Palestinian neighbors".

This
is the thinking of the current Netanyahu government, which is different
than the thinking of Israel’s past governments going back 20-30 years.
At the time of the Oslo Accords, signed in 1993, the thought was that if
the Palestinian issue was solved it would be followed by peace in the
Arab world. Gold says that has now changed. “Increasingly, we are
becoming convinced it is the exact opposite. It is a different order we
have to create.”Back
in 2002, Saudi Arabia offered Israel the Arab Peace Initiative. It
called for Israel to withdraw to the 1967 borders, share joint control
of Jerusalem with the Palestinians, and allow an unspecified number of
Palestinians to return and live in Israel. The peace plan also called
for Israel to withdraw from the Golan Heights. Today, there is no
leadership in Syria that Israel could effectively negotiate with
regarding the Golan Heights, and Netanyahu has publicly stated that the
Golan will remain in Israel’s hands forever. Because Syria has
disintegrated as a nation state, the Arab Peace Initiative is out of
date. Arab leaders have said it is a “take it or leave it” plan, but
they also realize it must be updated to reflect the current changes in
the Middle East.

While
Gold did not refer to that specific plan at the Herzliya gathering, he
did assure international leaders that Israel wants to explore every
avenue of peace. Gold guaranteed that when Israel sees a great strategic
moment emerging, “We will exploit every effort. We will turn over every
rock to make sure we bring a safer Middle East to the state of Israel.”

C. HartSource: http://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2016/06/israels_emerging_mideast_foreign_policy.html Follow Middle East and Terrorism on TwitterCopyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.